The present invention relates to toilet odor venting devices, and is directed more particularly to a toilet odor venting apparatus which can be used with toilets having a variety of sizes and configurations, without modifying the toilet and without using any tools.
Prior to the present invention there have been a number of attempts to eliminate the unpleasant odors produced in connection with the use of a toilet in a closed room. One class of these attempts, described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,297,935 (Baither), 2,603,797 (Baither), and 5,079,782 (Sim), use suction assemblies which draw malodorous air from a toilet bowl, through the holes of the flush ring thereof, and eject them from the room by venting them into the floor drain of the toilet or into a pressure relief pipe located in the wall of the room. While venting devices of this class are at least partially effective, they have the disadvantage that they must either be built into a new toilet at the time of its construction, or be incorporated into an existing toilet by making extensive modifications thereto.
Another class of attempts to eliminate toilet odors includes retrofitable venting devices which draw malodorous air from the toilet through a specially designed toilet seat or through an inlet which fits between the toilet seat and the toilet bowl. Venting devices of this type are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,728,088 (Gudish), 4,365,361 (Sanstrom), 5,161,262 (Quaintance, Sr.) and 5,231,705 (Ragusa). While venting devices of this type are also at least partially effective, they have the disadvantage that they are cumbersome, visually conspicuous, and spoil the appearance of the toilet.
Still another class of attempts to eliminate toilet odors includes venting devices which are relatively inconspicuous because at least some of their constituent parts are located out of sight in the body or tank of the toilet. Venting devices of this type are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,972,774 (Hartwell), 4,103,370 (Arnold) and 5,201,079 (Sowards). While also somewhat effective, devices of this class have the disadvantage that they are designed to be installed in a toilet at the time of its manufacture. Another disadvantage of odor venting devices of this type is that they bring AC line power in close proximity to the toilet and therefore expose the user thereof to a risk of shock or injury.